Cargo Not Accepted

In the United States, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) specifies regulations for pilot’s flight and duty regulations. The following is a list of some pertinent regulations:

Under the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 117 dictates flight and duty regulations limitations for commercial passenger carrying pilots.  Under the new set of rules commercial passenger pilots must have longer opportunity for rest between work shifts before they enter the cockpit. The new rule state that a pilot must have 10-hour minimum rest period before a schedule flight duty time, this is a increase of two-hour in comparison to the old rules. The new rule also states that a pilot must have the opportunity to get 8 hours of continual sleep within the 10-hour rest requirement. In addition to rest requirements the new regulation state that pilot are allowed to be on-duty anywhere between 9 and 14 hours in a single day. This number changes based on the number of flights a pilot flies in one day as well as the time in which the pilot’s began their day. The new rules also take in to consideration time zone changes. Under the new rules pilot’s flight time is restricted to 8 or 9 hours, these numbers also depend on when the pilot began their work day.  Pilots must also have a minimum 30 hours off in a week, which is a 25 percent increase over the previous minimum. Under the new rule at the start of each flight, pilots must report they are “fit for duty.” If not, they will be taken off the flight.

Cargo pilot are exempt from the new rules, which govern pilot’s flight and duty times.   Cargo pilots fly under the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 121.471,which are the older rules. These rules do not require as much rest, authorizes longer times on duty as well as permits cargo pilots to fly over eight hours in some cases. Under the old rules there are no restrictions on flight time during the night, when cargo pilot are hard at work. In addition cargo pilots are allowed to work more time in a single week.    

In the preamble of the final ruling it state that cargo operations were excluded from the new regulation because "while a passenger-operation accident can result in numerous fatalities, an all-cargo accident would consist primarily of property damage" (Final Rule,2009).  Cargo pilot are excluded from the ruling because they do not conduct passenger transport operations.  In addition cargo operation were excluded from the new rules all has to do with money.  If cargo pilots where to have the same flight and duty times as commercial passenger pilot’s the cargo carrier would have to hire more pilot to fill the time slots where additional rest is required to still perform their operation at it current status.  In an article entitled “UPS pilots urge more rest for cargo crews” it states that the reason the FAA, has excluded cargo pilots from the new regulation was because it would cost the industry $550 million to comply, outweighing safety benefits.

I do believe that cargo pilot should be included in the new rules.  “Cargo pilots fly the same aircraft, routes, as the commercial passenger pilot’s.  They also operate their flight inside the same airspace as every other pilot, and they use the same airports as commercial pilot’s,” (Bachman, 2014).  To ensure the on time delivery of packages cargo pilot’s operations their flights during the night or early morning hours, therefore increasing the potential for pilot fatigue.  I thought the whole mission of the FAA was to promote safety within the aviation industry.  How are they accomplishing this if they excluded half of the aviation community?    

If cargo carriers were to be included in the new rules this would require companies to hire more pilot to compensate for the pilot shortage due to new rest requirements. This would create more jobs and maybe lower the hour minimums for hire because the cargo industry as well as the commercial industry would be short of pilots. This would in turn cost the cargo companies more money but the public and the airways would be safer. 

  

Reference:

Bachman, J. (2014, February 20). Should Cargo and Passenger Pilots Fly With Different Rest Rules? Retrieved from http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-02-20/should-cargo-and-passenger-pilots-fly-with-different-rest-rules

Carroll, J. R., The (Louisville, Ky.) Courier-Journal. (2014, March 13). UPS pilots urge more rest for cargo crews. Retrieved from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/13/ups-pilots-urge-more-rest-for-cargo-crews/6402615/

Far-fc 2016: Federal aviation regulations for flight crew. (2016 ed.). (2015). Newcastle, Washington: Aviation Supplies & Acade.


Federal Aviation Administration. (2009). Flightcrew Member Duty and Rest Requirements. Retrieved from https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/rulemaking/recently_published/media/2120-AJ58-FinalRule.pdf